Message & Media : Keeping It Real

Marketers, ask yourself: Are you a real direct marketer?

• Real direct marketers aren't reluctant to learn about new things such as Twitter, Foursquare, mobile advertising, QR codes and text messaging, whether or not they use it.

• Real direct marketers know that people buy, not companies. And people buy from people, not companies (which is why the experts at MarketingExperiments recommend you include the name of a real person with a real title in the "from" line of emails you send to your customers).

• Real direct marketers know what sells, why it sells, who buys it, and when and where they buy it.

• To a real direct marketer, all customers are not equal. Those who buy more often, spend more and have purchased most recently are more valuable than the other 80 percent and are treated accordingly.

• Real direct marketers agree with David Ogilvy, "If it doesn't sell, it's not good advertising." While awards are nice, actual sales and bottom line results are the true measure of direct marketing success.

• Real direct marketers are grounded in reality vs. perception. For example, according to a DMA study, direct mail and catalogs currently drive more than $556 billion, or one-third of direct sales, in the U.S. annually. In contrast, direct response advertising on the Internet, including search and combined with email and mobile marketing, currently makes up less than 30 percent of total direct sales. While the reality is digital channels are growing rapidly, the perception is direct mail and catalogs are dead. But they aren't.

• Real direct marketers solve problems with confidence because they test, track and measure results. Have a low average order? Test offers to increase it. Have a product priced too low with margins too small to sell in single units? Test bundling. True direct marketers love a challenge.

• Real direct marketers also know that while direct marketing has rules … rules are to be broken. However, you owe it to yourself and your business to understand the rules before you start breaking them.

• Real direct marketers understand the difference between features and benefits. They understand successful messaging answers the customer's all important question, "What's in it for me?" Benefits seal the deal.

• Real direct marketers know direct marketing isn't something you do once a year or once a quarter. It's the heart of how you do business.

• Real direct marketers take customer-generated test results over focus group findings any day of the week.

• Real direct marketers understand the offer is more than just free shipping. They understand it's everything you are willing to give in exchange for response to push people over the edge of indecision.

• Real direct marketers have a natural curiosity about what works and what doesn't. And they eagerly learn from both.

• To a real direct marketer, a postcard isn't just a rectangular piece of cardstock. It's a tactile mini- billboard that's an immediate read and, once in-hand, has the recipient's undivided attention.

• Real direct marketers don't stop mailing catalogs unless they are 99.99 percent positive catalogs are no longer responsible for driving online, phone or in-store sales.

You get the idea. Direct marketing is more than direct mail. Paper and postal rate increases won't kill it, because it cuts across all media and because it's accountable. CFOs love it as much as CMOs.

When you're a real direct marketer, you know how much money you make for every marketing and advertising dollar you invest. You know what works and what doesn't. In the best of times and the worst of times, you have a competitive edge. And that now matters more than ever before.

Pat Friesen is a direct response copywriter and creative strategist writing for online and traditional media. She can be reached at (913) 341-1211, pat@patfriesen.com or by visiting www.patfriesen.com. Also find her at linkedin.com/in/patfriesen.

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